Nova Scotians with Intellectual Disabilities Should not be Incarcerated

A study was conducted in order to research the living conditions for Nova Scotians who are incarcerated, the particular group taken into question being the people with special needs who suffer from intellectual disabilities. They saw that these individuals were treated horribly, being denied their basic human rights. This does raise a sign of alarm.

What is going on?

Dorothy Griffiths, the author of this study, called into question the way in which Beth MacLean, Joey Delaney and the late Sheila Livingstone were treated in psychic wards at a recent human rights conference.

Back in 2006 she and doctor Chrissoula Stavrakaki delivered a troubling report by analyzing how things worked out in the Nova Scotia Hospital. They saw that people with disabilities would be left locked up in the psychiatric unit even after they were supposed to be discharged. They stated that there was no reason for these people to still be locked up.

When looking at this Hospital they also saw a dangerous pattern emerge where the individuals in question would just bounce back and forth from the health system to the Department of Community Services. When they made this report they found out that almost half of the 19 patients there would be held against their wishes.

What does the hospital have to say about this?

They said that out of their patients, 82 of them do not require any more treatments but they are still waiting to be placed in a community care facility.

Community care facilities take some time to be built. However, with the large number of people that are held against their wishes and without a way to get out the situation something needs to be done about. And in needs to be done fast. It is not right to hold people with their accord just because they have nowhere to go.

Brad is a former Senior Fellow at the Schuster Institute for Investigative Journalism at Brandeis University, is an award-winning travel, culture, and parenting writer. His writing has appeared in many of the Canada’s most respected and credible publications, including the Toronto Star, CBC News and on the cover of Smithsonian Magazine. A meticulous researcher who’s not afraid to be controversial, he is nationally known as a journalist who opens people’s eyes to the realities behind accepted practices in the care of children. Brad is a contributing journalist to Advocator.ca